Forgotten
by Planetship-Theta
Summary: IrvinexRinoa, Minor Zeltis. Starts Squinoa, Selvine. The GFs have eaten everyone except Irvine and Rinoa's memories. Rating may change for later chapters. Fluffy. Ch7: Rinoa, Irvine, Zell, Quistis, and Xu eat lunch together, once again.
1. The Lost Memories

Disclaimer that nobody ever reads: Squaresoft owns everything in this story except the plot.  
  
Irvine watched the sun set. He looked to Rinoa beside him. In this lighting, with the outside wall of Balamb Garden behind her, and the sun setting in front of her, her shhadow long across the balcony, she was beautiful. Maybe, if he wasn't so deeply in love with Selphie, and she weren't tied down to Squall, they could be together. But now, they were simply friends, and don't wish for anything more. "Sad, isn't it?" Her voice broke his train of thought. "What?" "Every day, their memories fade more and more. Already we're the only ones who remember Ultimecia. They've almost forgotten their own GFs names." "Sefie's having trouble telling Carbuncle and Siren apart, and they've all forgotten their childhoods again. Every time I remind her she forgets as soon as we turn to something else." Rinoa turned to look into the sunset, and sighed. "Squall doesn't remember when we claimed the Ragnarok. He simply knows that I'm a sorceress and always have been. He doesn't remember before he talked, either." Irvine climbed off the railing and back onto the balcony, and leaned back, setting his hat on the ground. "I suppose its the price they have payed for power, and that we chose not to. Sefie can't remember anything that I tell her after more than three days, and I'm surprised she can still remember how to fly the Ragnarok."  
  
The ocean waves lapped against the sides of the Garden. Irvine and Rinoa heard the sounds of the cafeteria right below them, and of the people eating outside around that. Inside, there were some people in the halls. "'Course, fighting has given us all problems. I'm half-deaf in my right ear. And you... You're a sorceress, and you've seen so much destruction that you'll never become your old self, back when things were simple, and all you had to worry about was an army. And yet, we continue to pay our prices," Irvine told Rinoa. The two began to think on this for a moment, rinoa turnign her head from Irvine to the sunset, and then, seconds later, Rinoa said a single word, between a breath and a whisper "Seifer..." Irvine responded quickly, almost jumping to his feet, and had lost his former calm "What?" "Hmm?" "You said Seifer's name." "Oh... I was just wondering if he's OK." Rinoa was much calmer than Irvine. "Yeah, he disappeared after Ultimecia. Now I doubt anyone but us remembers him," Irvine replied, much calmer.  
  
The two were interrupted by the sound of a door opening. Irvine rolled over to look to see who it was "Hey Sefie." Selphie responded "Hi Irvy, Hi Rinoa! Watching the sunset?" "Yep." "Irvy, I didn't see you at dinner. I don't think I saw you either, Rinoa. You both ate earlier than normal, or are you going to eat late?" Irvine responded "Yeah, I forgot. Too much on my mind recently. Guess I'll eat later" Rinoa, meanwhile, looked at Selphie with a puzzled look on her face "I was where I usually was, with Squall. You must have forgotten you saw me." "Must have. I wonder if it was what's-her-name or Carbunny?" "They're Siren and Carbuncle, Sefie," Irvine told her, firmly, as if it was the fiftieth time he had told her that day (It was actually the tenth time that week, but he was still annoyed). "Oh! That's right. I must have forgotten." Irvine began to tease her "Like you forgot that Garden Festival Committee meeting yesterday?" Selphie began to fake pouting "You're so mean, Irvy!" Irvine got up, grabbed his hat, and began to hug Selphie, putting his hat on her. Playing along with her fake pouting, he said "Sorry Sefie." He held the short girl in his arms. To him, little felt better than simply holding her. Their faces didn't quite meet, but he didn't mind. His mind drifted back a few minutes, to Rinoa, and how he had thought of her. He didn't particularly care, Selphie knew that he thought of every woman in Garden that way, and so didn't need to know the details.  
  
Irvine broke the silence "Sefie, want to sit with us and watch the rest of the sunset?" Selphie turned to him, "Sure, Irvy." They both sat on the balcony floor, which was beginning to get cold, as was the air around them. Irvine lay with his head resting on the palms of his hands, his feet to the sunset, staring into the red sky above the setting sun. Selphie lay next to him, her head resting on his left elbow. Rinoa sat in front of them, slightly to his right, sitting on the balcony railing. Irvine deeply cared for Selphie, and would probably give up his life to save her, if it came to that, but he also felt something for Rinoa. It wasn't exactly friendship, it was something more. More than just his random feelings for every woman in Garden, but at the same time he was attached to Selphie. Further, Rinoa was with Squall. And yet, he realized, if the two ran off together, Squall and Selphie would probably forget within the week. Rinoa was the only one of the six he could seriously talk to, because of the GFs eating all of the others' memories.  
  
A flock of birds flew overhead. Their screeches could be heard well over the hum of Garden's powerful engines, driving a military installation with a population greater than that of a large town, an armory carrying enough weapons to tear up a city, provisions enough to hold out in the even to a seige for several months, and a bomb shelter enough for this population, their weapons, and a week's food to survive a missile attack. Irvine lifted his right hand from beneath his head, pointed his extended pointer finger at a bird in the flock, carefully tracked it, then mouthed "bang" while rapidly moving his hand back, imitating a gun. His gun. How many times had he fired it. How many times had he put a bullet into a breathing being's chest. How many lives had he ended. He whispered the beginning of his next thought "Maybe..." Selphie heard him. "Maybe what, Irvy?" "I was thinking. How many lives, human and monster, have the six of us-Us three, along with Squall, Quisty, and Zell, ended. Maybe we killed enough that their blood fills the sky, and that is why its red." "Irvy, stop thinking about death." Selphie, not thinking of any better way to distract Irvine from his thoughts, quickly kissed his cheek, then pulled away. Irvine turned to Selphie, and returned her kiss.  
  
The sun dipped ever lower, and the western sky grew redder. The sea foam suddenly sprayed against Garden's sides as it hit a sudden wave. Selphie began to speak "I've never noticed how fast Garden is, and yet how long it takes to get anywhere. Come to think of it, where are we going, again? I guess I forgot." Irvine decided he'd taunt her for her memory again "You also forgot last week, when you noticed how fast Garden is. We're en route from Trabia to Timber by way of Balamb, which we stopped at for a day two days ago." "Irvy, stop that. I need to use the GFs to function as a SeeD. Without them I can't do anything." Rinoa turned from her staring at the sunset. "Timber's only three days away. It'll be so refreshing to be back, catch up with old friends, see the work we did." She turned back to the sunset, crossing her legs, her left foot hanging over the edge of the balcony, her right leg crossed over it and her heel on the balcony. Her blue cape fell, and reached barely over the back of the railing. Irvine couldn't help but admire her. And yet he had Selphie lying against him, her head on his shoulder, and deeply enjoyed it. This confused him. In an effort to distract himself from his confusion, he pressed his lips against Selphie's, and began to kiss her, both with an open mouth, their tongues dancing together.  
  
They were interrupted by the sound of the latch on the secure door. Irvine pulled his face away from Selphie's, and the two resumed their staring into the sunset before the door opened. Quistis stepped out. She had a much better memory than any of the others who continued to use GFs, but that was because she kept an incredibly detailed journal, along with a number of notes from it, and studied those daily. Only the heroes of SeeD knew this, she had kept her secret well. Squall had forgotten, as had Selphie. The only thing that kept Zell from forgetting was that he and Quistis slept together most of the time, and so he saw her memorization every day. The two of them were incredibly close, closer than Squall was to Rinoa, or Irvine and Selphie. Irvine contemplated this as he saw Quistis approach, and decided it was because he and Selphie had a barrier created by the fact that one of them could remember and the other couldn't. Selphie was the first to shout a greeting, despite the fact that Quistis was not more than ten feet away. "Hey Quisty!" "Hello Selphie, Irvine, Rinoa. Seems like everyone's gathering here to watch the sunset."  
  
There was barely a sliver of sun in sight, and the horizon was bright red-orange. Quistis stepped to lean on the wall. Every step she took was measured, prescise, and considered. Not even the GFs could eat that part of her. Irvine saw some beauty in her, but he didn't care for her in the way he cared about Selphie. Or Rinoa, for that matter. Irvine was not sure who he cared about, or in what way. Whenever he thought about Rinoa and Selphie, he confused himself. And yet, he couldn't help it. "So, Quistis, when are you going to get your instructor's certificate back? I'm sure Squall would give it to you if asked," Irvine asked Quistis, trying ot encourage her to get to work and pursue her dream again. "I don't think I'll try. Shiva, Bahamut, and the Brothers have eaten too much of my memory. I already need to spend an hour each day just to remember the past. Adding lesson planning, remembering what I taught, telling my classes apart, and several classes a day just isn't worth it." Rinoa began to think, then turned to face Quistis. "Quistis, we six are the most experienced people in Garden. Of us, you're the only one who has taught. Do you want your skills to die with you?" "No, of course not. I just don't think I can teach anymore."  
  
The last sliver of sun vanished under the horizon. Now it was a pure red horizon, fading to blue on the other side. Irvine changed the subject. "I'm getting hungry. Anyone else want to go to the cafeteria with me?" The other three had already eaten, so Irvine went downstairs to eat alone. He finished his food, surrounded by the third group of SeeDs, cadets, and junior classmen, then left for his dorm. 


	2. Vengeance

Disclaimer: Chapter 1 disclaimer still applies.  
  
A blonde man in a long white trenchcoat addressed a pack of Galbadians. They were all mismatched, with nothing to indicate any common allegiance besides their presence here. The blonde man raised his gunblade high in his right hand, with an anger filling his words "The world of now is chaotic, in constant war. Why? A force of roving murderers for hire. SeeD. If we elimanate SeeD, nothing will stop our peacekeepers from ending all war and suffering in this world!" At this, the crowd cheered. "To accomplish that aim, we must kill the six worst of them, lauded as heroes by all the pathetically decieved world. The sorceress Rinoa Heartilly, a traitor to Galbadia, and former leader of the 'Forest Owls' terrorist force." He paused a split second to think "and my ex-girlfriend," then continued. "The assassin, Irvine Kinneas, another traitor. The martial artist, Zell Dincht, a Balamb native. Selphie Tilmitt, the remorseless killer, while speaking of peace. Quistis Trepe, ever calm even as she slashes throats with her whip. And, naturally, Rinoa's Knight and the leader of the pack, Squall Leonhart." As he gathered his breath between sentances, he thought "and the jerk who stole my girlfriend." He then continued "see this scar on my face? That was the same villian's blade." At this point, his followers began chanting "Death to Leonhart," loud enough to be impossible to hear Seifer's speech over them. He sheathed his gunblade, his followers' wrath aroused against SeeD.  
  
He knew Squall and Rinoa were well beyond his reach, but he could hurt them by killing the helpless close to them. He slipped away from his impromptu stage at Deling City Square, headed for his home, and walked back to his room in the large mansion he had bought with the money he embezzeled from Galbadia Garden after it had been defeated at Centra. General Caraway's ruled as a dictator over Galbadia, created when he ordered the military to put him into power after Edea killed Deling, then was defeated herself. He tolerated Seifer, although there was no open connection. Many suspected that he recieved some under-the-table funding and support from Caraway, though. He did, but he and Caraway were good about destroying the evidence. Seifer took the key that he had hidden under the base of a large lamp on a filing cabinet, and opened the locked drawer in his desk. He replaced the key, and reached into the secret compartment in the bottom of the drawer above, dialing in the combination from memory (he had to; he had a terrible angle.). Open popped the slot, and out came a stack of papers. Not many could fit in the compartment, so he had to constantly buy and hide mor compartments. Soon it would get to the point where you could trip over them, catch yourself on another, and almost hit a third. To save space and eliminate the paper trail, he destroyed his old plans after they had been executed. He still needed more secret compartments constantly.  
  
He put the plans on his desk, pulled out a pencil from the jar, and got to work, scribbling down diagrams, attack positions, plans of direction, everything. He decided he'd need to pick his team before planning this attack further. He'd only need a small team for this. His posse was a must. He picked the Centra Sabers as his backup. They were an elite team, made up of former soldiers from the Battle of Centra. Next he'd need a ship. It would have to be fast, stealthy, and equipped with a good maritime radar system. Now that Adel's Tomb had fallen, the radio interference had subsided, well enough that radar worked. Raijin opened his office door "Seifer, you should turn on the TV, ya know." Seifer clicked on his small office TV. The news was showing. Apparently two former SeeD leaders, the Kramers, had been assassinated at their house in Centra. Seifer smiled inwardly "That would be Cid and Edea. The Dollet Anacondaurs did their job well." He continued to watch the news announcer. Aside from a brief mention that Galbadia was suspected as connected to it, nothing. "Good. They left little evidence. Let SeeD feed on their rumors."  
  
Forgetting the plan he was working on, he turned to another paper. A letter of request. He had a plan to ambush the Ragnarok ready. All he needed were several portable SAM launchers, and a supply of missiles for them big enough to blast through the Ragnarok's armored plating. He researched the types of portable SAM missiles the G-Army had. One caught his eye. A shaped-charge device with a range of up to a mile, straight up. It had an infrared tracking system attached, and a simple computer system to identify and track its target's coordinates when it wasn't moving. Further, when multiple missiles were going after the same target, they would home in on eachothers' blasts, focusing their power to break through a single point. It had enough power to blast straight through a foot of steel, and was designed to serve double-duty as an anti-tank and anti-aircraft munition. It had an anti-personell variant, but Seifer wasn't interested in it. The only downside to it was the fact that it was expensive as hell, and weighed ten pounds per missile. The launcher needed to launch a missile its size was only technically man-portable, as it usually had two people carrying its two-hundred-fifty pound weight, needing to be braced before firing it. The proper bracings added an extra twenty pounds to its weight. They used an explosive and a propellant that were only slightly improved from where they were reverse-engineered from equipment stolen from Esthar in the Sorceress War.  
  
Seifer knew it would take a huge amount of persuasion to get General Caraway to give him these missiles. Nonetheless, he needed them to shoot down Ragnarok. The general would give him what he needed, if he approved the plan. Eternal Peace, the name of Seifer's organization, had never let any of their support slip, and, often, their plans were successful. General Caraway knew that the only downside to relying on Eternal Peace to carry out his plans of conquest was that they would make their own plans, and move on their own. Nonetheless, as long as their aims coincided, he would continue to fund and supply them, even hide their training camps, and send his best soldiers to them after they left the army. Seifer smiled as he wrote his request for the SAMs "My plans require three separate launcher positions, each with one launcher. If you do not believe this will be enough, another launcher could be positioned at each position. Each launcher should have enough for three shots at least, although more shots will be more likely kill Tilmitt, along with anyone else aboard." Seifer knew better than to mention SeeD's sorceress, as he knew she was the general's daughter.  
  
He pressed an intercom button, and Fujin's signal rang throughout the mansion. He trusted all his mansion staff, as they were hired from the upper ranks of Eternal Peace. Fujin came to his office about a minute later "Fujin, I need you to send a letter for me to General Caraway." Fujin's reply came quickly, and robotically. "AFFIRMATIVE." She took his letter, and grabbed an envelope. She folded the letter as she walked away. Seifer turned to his next order of buisiness, the plan he was working on earlier. "Squall took everything from me... Everything but vengeance. In turn, I will take everything from him... And I won't leave him with vengeance. When he dies, he'll see me, standing over him, my gunblade to run him through." On his plans, he had little left to plan except which of Eternal Peace's ships to take. He began to think, pulling out his list of ship specifications. "Hmm... Justice is my fastest ship, but its little but fast. It will only hold a few elites of the Centra Sabers, but they'll probably be enough. On the other hand, Light's a good sensor ship. Downside is, its only a scout, and isn't big enough to grab the enemy ship, or small enough to pull alongside. I'm probably not going to use Light. The Sorceress is just a weapons platform, no way its suitable. Hmm... Eternity is a good stealthy ship. Its designed as a missile boat, but I could probably swap out its computers for radar computers, and upgrade its radar by getting rid of some of the missiles. Set up some tents on deck, and use the missile bays for supplies, and I could definitely use this one. Its definitely fast enough."  
  
Seifer began to draw up the plans for an upgrade of the Eternity. He'd use his personal fortune, aqquired from his few months of servitude to Edea, and his looting of the wreckage after her fall. Further, he had several investments set up to call in his money, and Eternal Peace's members were glad to donate a portion of their salaries to him. What fools. But, they served him, and they served his purposes. He knew he was not going to live a normal life after Squall's death. In fact, he doubted he'd survive at all. He might talk about Galbadian expansion, but really his only goal was the complete destruction of SeeD. If Squall didn't kill him, he'd probably kill himself after defeating Squall. He filed away the attack plans, locked their compartment, and pulled out the blueprints of the Eternity. He then pulled out a blank sheet of paper, and, in his neat handwriting, which he had grown adept at disguising for his letters to Caraway, to hide his paper trail, began to write his designs, and list what he needed to buy. "Hmm... I'll probably want a spare computer, to keep the missile computer safe. I'll then need to pay to get the missile bays converted to food storage, and the missile racks to extra sensors. I'll need to check the Catalog."  
  
The Catalog was a list of everything that Eternal Peace could buy, along with its specifications. He flipped to the radar section. "Hmm... This Dollet model isn't exactly energy-efficient, or stealthy, but it gets the job done. I don't have a clue if our target even uses active sensors, so no passive radar for me. I don't know their sound signature, so no passive sonar either. Active sonars give away too much, so I need a low-signal active radar. Luckily there is still some radio noise, so the low-power models will be able to disguise themselves as interference to everyone not looking for it. Question is, do they have passive radar? Its a risk we'll have to take. Worst-case scenario, they flee us. If they come to us, we'll lose the element of surprise, but I can probably take them anyway." Seifer thought through his plan carefully, half out loud, half silent. He selected a good low-power, long-range active radar, and began to laugh quietly, then spoke "Excellent... When Squall learns of this, he'll be forced to action. That'll draw the messenger girl right into my Ragnarok trap, hopefully along with the rest." 


	3. The Cycle Continues

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1  
  
Noon, the next day, Irvine ate his lunch alone, as Selphie was in the Quad working on the Garden Festival. He had drills to attend and time to kill afterward, and planned to spend the rest of the day with Selphie. But, of course, nothing ever goes as planned. The White SeeD ship pulled up alongside, matched speed, and, as they normally do, one leapt aboard the Garden's main second floor deck, and waited. Seeing him there, Squall sent Xu to meet him, and find out what they needed. When she returned to the bridge five minutes later, he called a meeting. Irvine ran from the Cafeteria to the elevator, catching up to the short girl on the way. He saw as Zell and Rinoa entered the elevator and sent it up to the second floor, and followed them as soon as the elevator returned. Irvine and Selphie caught up to Zell and Rinoa, and the four reached the Garden's main balcony. Squall and Quistis were already there.  
  
Immediately, Irvine could see that something was wrong. Squall's emotional armor, which Rinoa had to draw him out of so long ago he forgot, and he still retreated into when he had to, lay in ruins, and Irvine could see him barely avoiding crying. Quistis leaned against the Garden wall, her face soaked in tears, although she was not visibly crying. She hid it very well. A White SeeD faced the two, primarily focused on Squall. Rinoa spoke first "Squall, what's wrong?" Squall turned to her "You'd best let him explain it," his voice choked with tears, his hand indicating the White SeeD, who explained the situation, telling the exact same thing that had Squall and Quistis crying. Selphie grabbed Irvine for comfort, who threw his arms around the smaller girl, tears streaming down both of their faces. Squall recovered first, mostly, his sadness turning to wrath waiting for direction. "Tell me who did this! I'll kill him myself!" Rinoa, who was less affected by the news "Calm down, Squall. It's too dangerous!" She grabbed at her boyfriend, trying to restrain his fury, and caught his arms. He threw her off from his left, although she retained her grip on his right. The White SeeD spoke, or rather spat, a single word, a name "Seifer."  
  
The news that it was Seifer's doing brought Squall's wrath to well beyond a boiling point. "Once I get my hands on him there won't be enough left to burn!" "Calm down Squally!" "After all she did for him as a kid, he repays her like this? I'll scatter the bastard all over Deling City! I'll squeeze enough blood from him to turn the entire sea blood-red!" "Squally, would you please calm down? It isn't safe for you to go like this!" Squall, though, was well beyond rational, or the point of listening to anyone, even Rinoa. However, he was beginning to get tired, and his burning wrath had cooled to icy fury, and it showed in his voice, which, if tone of voice affected the temperature, was cold enough to reach the ocean a deck below, and freeze it to the point of crushing Garden's basement. "I'll give him... a heart-to-heart... with the Lionheart." The last three words were said patting the elaborate grip on his gunblade, which he always carried with him. Quistis, who had also calmed a bit, spoke up "Rinoa's right. If you'd watch the news, you'd know that Seifer is quite popular in Galbadia. Besides, we need you to run Garden. Send someone else."  
  
Squall began to think "Quistis is right. But who? I can't endanger Rinoa. Zell's not an assassin. Selphie's not either. Either Quistis or Irvine... Irvine's a trained sniper, and was raised in Galbadia for seven years of his life, so he can blend in." Quistis interrupted his train of thought "Squall, are you there." Squall snapped back to where he was, away from planning a mission. "Irvine, I'm assigning you to the mission to assassinate Seifer. Gather your sniper rifle and sidearm, along with your ammo. You're setting off on foot as soon as we reach Timber." Irvine was busy crying into Selphie's hair, but hearing his name snapped him back. It still took time to process, as the news of Seifer's latest murder still filled his mind. Seconds later "Yes sir," he said as he saluted his commander. Squall turned to the White Seed "Did you recognize any accomplices?" "He attacked as part of a pack of three, with the rest of the boarding party, probably the entire crew of his ship, holding many of us off. His right flank was covered by a wind mage with silver-gray hair wearing a blue shirt and carrying an oversized blue shuriken. I think she was female, if she is, she's not very feminine, and hides what she can't avoid altogether, and besides, I didn't get a good look at her, before Seifer's left flank, a black man who must weigh two hundred pounds with all his muscle, knocked me out by almost spearing me through the gut on his staff." Squall recognized those two descriptions "Fujin and Raijin. They knew what they were doing, and must take the consequences. Irvine, kill them if you can."  
  
Later...  
  
Balamb Garden pulled to a small area off the Timber coast. A small boat came out from Timber to meet them. Irvine and Selphie wandered to the main second-floor deck of Balamb Garden, where Irvine and Selphie joined the tide of people leaving for shore leave. They landed in Timber Harbor, a small dock connected to Timber proper via a short railway. The two rode in to Timber, Selphie's normal enthusiasm for trains and boundless energy contained, because she would have to say goodbye to her Irvy. She sat on him the entire ride. When they reached the main Timber station, Selphie kissed him goodbye, their kiss continuing for several minutes, neither wanting to let the other go, both knowing that they must, Finally, Irvine pulled away from Selphie, his hands sliding, reluctantly, off her body, and he began, alone, to go to avenge a death and kill a murderer, his rifle in a case in his duffel bag, his pistol on his belt. He stepped aboard his train, and the train pulled out, its destination: Deling City.  
  
Irvine's train pulled in to the city, his ride mostly undisturbed, as few would want to disturb a man with a sniper rifle at his side. Besides, he spent the day-long trip entirely in SeeD's private cabin. He was incredibly tense on this train trip. He tried to calm down, to think of Selphie, but that just enraged him more. As Deling City drew near, he became even tenser. Nothing would calm him down. He found a bottle of (illegal) tension pills that he had bought for this purpose in his pocket. He took one, and it began to flow through his system, calming him down minutes later. "The price we pay for power..." He disembarked the train, and, concealing his rifle in his coat, disassembled for easier concealment, began to walk to the Deling City Hotel. There he paid for three nights, rode the elevator up to his floor, and walked to his room. There he checked the maid service schedule, and decided he'd continue to hide his gun case in his duffel bag. It wasn't labeled as any gun, and, besides, it had a strong lock. Irvine walked to his window. It had a good look at the Deling City square. He stripped, crawled into bed, and went to sleep.  
  
He'd spend one day with his ear to the ground, another to investigate sniping positions and his target's locations, and the third to finish quickly, then be out before anyone noticed. The first of his investigation days went by perfectly. He found where Seifer's mansion is, in the rich district along the edge, near General Caraway's old home, before he moved to the Presidential Residence. He found what buying people drinks can find about Eternal Peace, and about Seifer's speaking schedule. Seifer would have a speech on the day Irvine had planned for his assassination. Irvine decided to get him before his speech. He stopped by a store to buy a bottle of alcohol detoxifying pills, and took a full dose, along with several glasses of water from the room sink. At least he wouldn't be badly hung-over in the morning.  
  
He woke up the next morning with none of the effects of the alcohol. First, he went to buy binoculars, in a "how can I have forgotten those?" mood. He bought a good pair, buying everything in cash, because it was less traceable, and left the store. Back at his hotel room, he began to scan everything he could see with his binoculars. Seifer's mansion was visible from his room, and he began to take in every detail. He could see the murderer himself in his office. That arrogant smirk still sat on his face "Who are you killing this time, Seifer?" Irvine scanned further, and spotted Raijin and Fujin there too, and decided his room would be a workable spot. He began to go hunt for other possibilities, to kill time the rest of his day. The central arch was locked. Out on the plains, there really was nothing to afford him concealment that wasn't so alone that it would be obvious. He wouldn't even try the Presidential Residence. He looked at a few other possibilities, but, eventually, decided on his hotel room.  
  
He awoke the next day. This was the day. He pulled his sniper rifle case from his duffel bag, took the key from the keychain he always had in his pocket, and unlocked it. He packed his bags, and assembled his rifle, taking meticulous attention to every bolt, every part screwed to another. This was it. He looked at his box of .50 caliber rifle rounds, carried inside the case. He loaded and chambered a bullet, then set his rifle down, opened his window, pushed out the screen, and began to watch with his binoculars. There was Seifer, in his office. Irvine took a dose of anti-tension. Raijin and Fujin were in two of the courtyards of Seifer's mansion complex. Irvine took aim, first at Raijin, then at Fujin, then, finally, at Seifer. His finger tensed on the trigger, and the same sound that he had heard hundreds of times before, the sound that threatened his right ear's hearing, and the sound that ended a life, rang out from the gun, despite its silencer. Irvine reloaded, swung the rifle around, and aimed it at the girl who always dressed in light blue. His laser sight settled between her eye and her eye patch, under her gray hair, and the sound of death rang out again. He settled on Raijin, and fired a third time. "That was for my mission," formed in his lips and was forced out by a breath from his lungs. He found he had more extra bullets than he could use, so he reloaded a third time, and lowered the gun a fourth time, shooting the man in the white trench coat, the man who no longer had a head, in the chest "and that was for Sis's murder."  
  
Irvine packed up the gun hurriedly, closed the bullet box, put them in their case, and locked it firmly. He buried the case under his dirty laundry in his duffel bag, and proceeded downstairs to check out. He had his tickets for the train out in his hand already, and climbed aboard. Killing one of the people he grew up with, whom he remembered from his childhood, even once one of his childhood friends, took a lot out of him. He slept most of the train ride, and his dreams constantly wandered to Seifer. He heard the voices of his friends, sometimes giving him a hero's welcome, which he hated, them giving a hero's welcome to a murderer, as much as when they yelled at him for killing the man who had been raised as his brother. Seifer killed Ellone, he killed Seifer, what made him any better? Once, he heard Edea's, no, Matron's, voice, his memories of his childhood fights with Seifer all rolled into one.  
  
And yet, consciously, he knew that she was dead, killed by Seifer's terrorists, most likely. But, he realized, he had tried to kill her. What made his attempt at murdering his mother-figure any better than Seifer's doing the same by proxy? He couldn't talk to Selphie about this, he needed someone who would remember. Rinoa could remember, was a good friend of his, and was nice. She'd be able to fin an answer to all this, a reason where there was none, and set his thoughts to rest. He almost wished he hadn't given up GFs, so that he could forget this. But then he remembered Selphie. Using GFs from the age of twelve onward had left her hopelessly addicted, and with the memory of a goldfish. He would not let that happen to himself. His thoughts turning to Selphie came with another realization: He had spent four days away from her. Balamb Garden would be returning to Balamb two days after he left, and he'd need to take a connecting train from Timber to reach Balamb, and meet up with them. Selphie, with her GF-weakened memory, might not even remember Irvine. This made him terribly unhappy.  
  
Author's Notes and Recap: The following characters are dead: Cid and Edea (killed by Seifer's terrorists), Ellone (killed by Seifer), Raijin, Fujin, and Seifer (killed by Irvine). Only Irvine and Rinoa have any memory whatsoever. Next Chapter will include more romance between Irvine and Rinoa, and signs of problems in her relationship with Squall. As for Irvine with Selphie, I suppose you'll have to find out.  
  
To my reviewers:  
  
Green: As I said, next chapter is IrvinexRinoa, with less angst or villainous plotting to get in the way.  
  
fallingfarther: Glad you like it, and thanks for your help with ideas. I've stressed this before in a review of FOYD: Proofread for spelling. Your ideas are good, but if anyone but you had written Smoke and Mirrors, I'd have stopped reading after the first sentence because of its atrocious conventions (especially spelling. Yes, I do that. If a story doesn't look readable, I skip it). If you're going to have to wait ~24 hours for something to show up, you don't need to type as fast as you can. Plus I'd expect better from you. I was always in the normal English classes and I *still* could spell better than you can.  
  
Wonderful Failure: Thanks. I've got *checks* 12 more chapters to write and post, if I don't combine any more (originally, from SeeD finding Ellone's death to Irvine assigned to go to Deling was Chapter 3, and chapter 4 picked up there and ended with the sniping scene). 


	4. Irvine's Return

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1  
  
Irvine rode his train into Balamb. His dreams never left him. His friends, sometimes giving a hero's welcome to the returning murderer, sometimes turning him away. The worst was when they forgot Ellone, Seifer, and him completely. Sometimes he dreamed of the times Ellone broke up his fights with Seifer, and what she would think of his killing Seifer. His dreams sometimes awakened him, and left him contemplating, realizing that what Sis would have thought back at the orphanage didn't matter, as she was dead now, her life cut short by Seifer's blade. He fell back to sleep immediatly after that, despite the fact that he had (restlessly) slept the entire day before, and dreamed of Ellone's death as if he was there.  
  
Seifer, Raijin, and Fujin leapt aboard the White SeeD ship. They rushed forward, cutting, pounding, and throwing White SeeDs aside. Irvine could do nothing but watch as Seifer's blade began to burn as he spun it, and a jet of fire leapt into Ellone from it as he charged. He spun it upward, and it cut into her flesh, sending her flying into the air. He leapt, and left three burning cuts across her chest. Seifer landed, his legs on either side of her hips, the tip of his gunblade against her throat. Irvine knew she was dead. Seifer forced his blade down into the corpse's neck, its flesh pale from the fear she felt in the seconds before she died. Irvine recovered himself, and shouted "No!" He drew the monosyllabic word out over the course of what seemed to him like an eternity, although it was more of three seconds. His gun found his hand, and he fired it into Seifer, Raijin, and Fujin. The first shot removed Seifer's head completely. The next took Fujin, and the third Raijin. He continued his barrage, firing it into Seifer's corpse before it got the chance to fall. Finally, his magazine depleted, the gun began to click.  
  
He awoke to his gun in his hand, pulling the trigger, the hammer clicking. He checked the room, and saw no signs of bullet damage. He didn't keep it loaded, either. That was lucky. Still, he had failed Sis, and, in failing her, failed everyone. He had failed before, choked when orders had him assassinating Matron for her betrayal. Now he had succeeded as a sniper, but, in doing so, murdered one of the orphanage gang. "My friends wouldn't accept a murderer back, would they?" he thought. "Maybe... Maybe I have enough blood on my hands. I've killed so many. My friends can't possibly take back such a murderer. I'm nothing but a murderer. Sure, I'm supposed to be good with women too, but really all I am is a hand to carry a gun, to aim it, and to take a life." His thoughts began to leave him uncomfortable, but he let them continue. "The next life this hand's gun takes... Will end the cycle. Prevent it from claiming more. The next bullet to leave this gun... Will be the one to lay low the sniper who has slain so many."  
  
Irvine loaded a bullet into his handgun, which he inspected as he thought. He raised the gun to his temple, slowly. His thoughts began to take a more positive path as he did so "Selphie's always been forgiving when her memory was the best. Now she likely won't even remember my mass-murderer past," he thought, not out loud. He began to pull the hammer back on the gun, his right thumb trembling "But Selphie might have forgotten me... How can I face my oldest love when she can't remember me? It's taken me five days away, and Garden is slower than the train, so it'll be six by the time I get home," still silent, still contained in the head that was to have a bullet through it. Irvine stopped his trembling, and pulled the hammer back. His finger tensed on the trigger "Rinoa will remember... I might even be forgiven by her. But is that in her power?" His finger relaxed a bit, and he was beginning to choke on his latest, self-given, mission of death. "What will she think I died for? What will anyone think? I'll be remembered for my weakness, the final crack, not for the strength I showed in surviving this long, if I'll be remembered at all." He opened the chamber on his gun, and removed the single bullet.  
  
"Why did I ask what *Rinoa* would think? Rinoa's with Squall. Why didn't I wonder about Selphie? Do I really care more about Rinoa than Selphie?" Irvine continued his thinking, on the border between silent and a whisper, sometimes one, sometimes the other. It didn't matter, he was alone in his car. "If I do, maybe I should avoid her. I wouldn't want to interfere with my friendship with Squall, and a little interference can spell the end of it, with his memory." He continued his thoughts, shifting from leaning to his left to he right "but he won't remember anything if I do stay close to Rinoa. If I hide my feelings well enough, nobody will be the wiser." Irvine's thoughts began to follow another branching path "if I hide my feelings from my few friends. Squall once did that, but starting to seems so much like a betrayal." Thoughts of betraying his friends did not make him happy.   
  
Later...  
  
Irvine stayed a day at the Balamb Hotel, and watched attentively as the Garden sailed in. He stood on the Balamb Docks. Irvine had forgotten how fast it was for its size. The sea foam formed a mist around the bottom of the Garden, which scattered and reflected sunlight as it sailed. Balamb Garden at sea was truly an awe-inspiring sight. He knew that somewhere in that monstrous building, at least the size of the town of Balamb, were all of his friends. Selphie, Squall, Rinoa, Quistis, and Zell. Irvine watched as Garden approached, both with longing and dread. Longing because it had almost been a week after he last saw his friends. Dread because he wondered who would remember him. He knew Rinoa would, and hoped Selphie would. Zell was one of his best friends, and hoped for him to remember, too. "Maybe they won't have forgotten," Irvine thought. His train of thought continued "and maybe they will. I'll have to go to speak to them to find out." Some hours later, Balamb Garden left the sea onto land. It forced a large wave up as it did so. The sunlight catching off the wave was even more impressive than its sailing. The Garden began to hover to its landing site near the town of Balamb. Irvine left Balamb to meet the Garden.  
  
At the Garden front gate, the guard admitted him, one of the Balamb Garden SeeD guards who did not use GFs. Irvine boarded, and went to find Selphie. First he checked the Quad, where she always was. Sure enough, she was there. "Hey Sefie!" he called. Selphie looked up. "I don't quite remember you. Remind me?" Irvine answered quickly "I'm Irvine. We've been together for years." "Some stuff's coming back, but not much... Rinoa's kept reminding me of you, but..." Irvine watched as Selphie searched the remains of her memory for him. He knew she was thinking of times spent together, and coming up nearly blank. After watching the pathetic sight of one who is looking for lost memories for several minutes, Irvine left to find Rinoa.  
  
He found her outside, in the side "courtyards" between the Garden outbuildings (such as the infirmary), and the Garden Center. Nobody was around, as most of the Garden's occupants were enjoying their shore leave. She ran to him and threw her arms around the taller man's neck "Irvine! I was beginning to miss you!" Not knowing what to do (she was Squall's girlfriend, after all), he grabbed her around the back in a quick hug, then the two pulled apart. Irvine asked her a question "Rinoa, who remembers me, besides you?" She focused back on him "Squall's forgotten, Quistis remembers you as a person, but little emotion of friendship, Zell is the same way, but worse off. Selphie-" "I know, she's forgotten completely." Emotional pain filled Irvine's face. He loved Selphie dearly, and now she remembered nothing of him.  
  
Rinoa began to speak "Irvine, why don't we get something to eat. It'll be a while before Squall calls you up to give a report, *if* he remembers to." "Sounds lovely, Rinoa." The two began to walk off to the Cafeteria. Rinoa tried to get him to hold her hand. This made Irvine even more confused "I thought you were with Squall..." He trailed off, and almost asked under his breath. "I am, but his memory is a major barrier. Then there's the fact that he's always doing Garden's paperwork. He never has any time for me." Irvine welcomed Rinoa's attention, as she did look good, but at the same time... Rinoa cheating on Squall with him... It confused him. Besides, given another week, Selphie would have forgotten that (to her memory) she just met him, and they'd be back together.  
  
As the two of them strolled into the cafeteria, Rinoa having succeeded in digging Irvine's left hand out of the pocket he was hiding it from her right in, they saw Zell waiting in the cafeteria line. Irvine shouted to him "Zell! Good to see you again." Zell turned, and looked confused "Rinoa and... I don't quite remember you. Rinoa, I thought you and Squall were together" Rinoa began to answer as she and Irvine approached "He's Irvine, one of our old friends. He was on a six-day mission, and you've forgotten him. Squall won't remember this anyway, *if* he finds out" "Irvine! That's it. That's why he looked like one of the people in the pictures Quistis had in her journal. Meet me between the Infirmary and the Quad, outside, when you have your food, I have some stuff I need to tell you." Rinoa and Irvine walked back to the back of the line, and talked as they waited to get to their food. "Irvine, you seem depressed. What's wrong?" "I killed Seifer." "And he killed Ellone. What's wrong with what you did?" "You don't understand, and probably never will. I grew up with Seifer. He was almost an older brother to me. And now... Now he had become... A murderer. You'll never know what that's like." Rinoa pulled her right hand out of his left, and put her arm around his back. This made Irvine happy, but also confused. He was with Selphie. Rinoa was with Squall. And yet, they were together.  
  
Irvine tried to hide his confusion, and Rinoa didn't notice. Rinoa decided she'd change the subject "So, Irvine, want to do anything to celebrate getting back in one piece? I hear there's a new restaurant in Balamb." Irvine began to think, keeping his thoughts silent "Is she asking me on a date?" Another question popped into his head "Do I really want to celebrate surviving another three murders?" Finally, a statement of fact, a decision "I need to retire. I've seen too much, killed too many." He decided against any deciding answer yet, and, trying to understand what Rinoa had in mind, simply said "Hmm?" "I was thinking the two of us, the people who remember, go off to the new restaurant." "So you're asking me on a date?" Rinoa giggled "Oh, sure, if you want," speaking in a way that made it perfectly clear that that was her intention. Irvine decided he'd put his arm around her, and Rinoa began to lean on him, putting her head against his shoulder. They didn't talk much during the rest of the quick wait, got their food, and left for the walkway between the Garden Center and the Infirmary, then turned toward the Quad. There they met Zell.  
  
"Rinoa, Irvine, nice seeing you!" He walked closer to the two of them, and his voice fell to a whisper. "The Trepie problem got so bad that Quistis can't go to the cafeteria anymore. Squall always tells us he'll do something about it, but never remembers. She now eats at a secret area I'll show you. Follow me." The two of them followed Zell into an area planted with trees. They took a path under them, and found a small table behind a bush, concealed by the trees above it. It was nearly perfectly hidden from sight. Quistis and Xu sat at the table, old friends talking. Quistis contained herself from shouting Zell's name. "Rinoa, nice seeing you. Irvine," saying his name almost questioningly "good to see you again." Irvine reassured Quistis "You didn't misremember me." Zell, meanwhile, broke into a sprint, and was already sitting next to Quistis, his arm around her. Rinoa took a seat next to Xu, and Irvine sat on her other side.  
  
Rinoa and Irvine set out their food, and Zell set out his tray, with both his and half of Quistis's food. She already had the other half of her supply, which Xu had brought. Zell had mastered the art of eating one-handed, his left arm draped around Quistis. Irvine knew his friends, if, with their memories, they could be called that, were happy, and it added to his happiness, and brushe away the confusion of Rinoa sitting next to him. He read Rinoa's face as she ate. She was as confused as he was regarding love. She had only ever loved Squall and Seifer until then, and never had feelings for both at once. Besides, she knew Irvine still had his attachment to Selphie. Rinoa began to speak to Irvine "Irvine, I'm beginning to have my doubts about our date." Irvine answered "we could call it off." Rinoa shook her head "nonono, not like that. I don't think we should do anything further." "Sure, Rinoa." Irvine felt small touch of jealousy for Zell and Quistis, happy together, when he had nobody. He sighed "well, I suppose I'll have to get Selphie to know me again." Zell and Quistis had their attention focused on eachother, Xu was off in her own little world, a world of regulations and rules, of structure, not a world of people. Rinoa was thinking about what she just said, so nobody noticed.  
  
Irvine turned to look back at Rinoa. She was amazingly beautiful, and yet just slightly beyond his reach. He began to contemplate silently "if I could just break her and Squall up..." He shook his head "no, why am I thinking that. I won't hurt my friends that way." He looked up, into the green needles covering the tree branches, and the umbrella protecting the table from them. "I'll just have to go back to Selphie. I love her more that way anyway," he thought, trying to convince himself that he was not attracted to Rinoa. It didn't work that well. "Do I? Would I tell myself that if I wasn't? Would I need to?" He kept his thoughts silent, as he didn't want Rinoa to know what he was thinking about. He decided he had to distract himself. He turned to Xu. "So, how's everything going? What've you been doing?" Xu returned from a world made for regulations, not people, and turned to him "Garden management isn't tough. I'm mostly making arrangements for Squall's meetings, signing papers, deciding what he needs to review, and filling out forms that his imput isn't needed on." Their small talk continued for some time, until, eventually, they finished their food and all except Rinoa had other tasks to attend to, and so scattered from their table. Irvine left to file his mission report, Xu back to her work as a secretary, Quistis and Zell back to their work around Garden.  
  
Author's Notes: Yes, I know I said less angst, but its so much fun to write. Sorry if you were expecting pure fluff, I have trouble not letting the angst seep in. I realize this chapter is a bit long-ish compared to the others, but I'm leaving it that way.  
  
To my reviewers:  
  
fallingfarther: Spelling is just a pet peeve of mine (and, apparently, of the people writing the site TOS). Ending the chapter with the sniping? I could have, and moved all of the after-sniping contemplation/monologue stuff to this chapter. There'll be more details on the addictiveness of GFs later.  
  
Wonderful Failure: Thanks. Zell and Quistis will have their turn in the spotlight eventually. I have 11 more chapters to write, *if* I don't combine any or decide to add any new ones (new ones are likely to be pure angsty contemplation/monologue). Once that's done, I'm considering a sequel.  
  
Green: Sorry this wasn't as fluffy as promised. As I said, angst is so much fun to write, and fluff is so hard to keep pure, at least for me.  
  
To my other readers:  
  
Don't you have something to say? 


	5. Impending Death

Disclaimer: The chapter 1 disclaimer still applies here.  
  
General Caraway strode into the Briefing Room hidden in the bowels of the General's Mansion. There, he had a personal briefing for Colonel Smith, one of his most loyal officers. "I've got the orders and my notes. I rehearsed this only hours earlier, and I prepared everything I'd need. So why is this making me nervous?" he asked himself silently. The old general keyed in four numbers on an keypad next to the door, and the two halves of the door slid apart. He passed through, and began to step across to the display side. Colonel Smith would be there in about five minutes, so he had some time. Nonetheless, he had to be perfectly prepared, and give the appearance of waiting. Last-minute preparations were far from general-like.  
  
So he waited, and worried. Exactly on time, not a second too soon or too late, the briefing room door opened. "Colonel Smith, exactly on time as always." "Yes sir. What orders do you have for me?" The colonel was a short man, with dark red hair trimmed exactly at Galbadian Army regulations. The left side of his dress uniform bore an assortment of medals, almost enough to stop a bullet, awarded for loyalty and tactical genius. In the way he walked to his position, his General saw the exact right balance of self-confidence, independance, and boot-licking. "Right to the point. Colonel, you have always been the most loyal of my officers. I had hoped that one day, when I retire, I could call upon you to replace me. Sadly, that cannot be." The old General paused here, emphasizing his point "I must call upon you to retire now, and take over the Eternal Peace. I have recieved word that they seemingly have at least eight new leaders, and nobody can decide who is highest of them. None of them have both the ability to drive a crowd and the tactical genius that Almasy had."  
  
The old general took another breath here, and continued, his voice still forceful. "Further, I have recieved a letter from Almasy written shortly before his death. A supply requisition for a mission that, according to it, only he, his top two advisors, and I know about. Of those four, I am the only one who survived the recent SeeD sniping. This plan has a number of parts. First, we must set up a reason for SeeD to deploy their space vessel into Galbadia, or another area in reach of Galbadian forces. Second, we must deploy a team to an area on the Ragnarok's flight path, armed with heavy SAMs. Almasy did his research, and has selected the weapons needed for this mission. We will also need to have forces ready to swarm the wreckage and kill any survivors. The third stage is those teams doing their job. Above all, absolutely none of this may be tracked to the Galbadian government." Caraway took another long pause, then asked a single question, with a single word. "Understood?"  
  
Colonel Smith began to think "Completely, Sir. I simply think that surely there are those better able to manipulate our civilians into these attacks." Caraway paused to answer Smith's question. "There are, there are. Selecting you for this mission was a hard choice, Colonel. I needed an inspiring tactical genius, and, while there are those more inspiring to the men, I also needed an officer whom I could be assured to have the absolute loyalty of, even outside the army. That is why I chose you." "Understood, Sir." Proving that there was a way to stand up straighter than Smith was, he did so. "I think I'll need to read over the orders and information before I have any more questions, Sir." Caraway handed a large stack of papers, stapled together, to the Colonel, then spoke "Good luck, Colonel. I expect to see your retirement notice within the week. Briefing adjourned." Smith left the briefing room, reading over his orders. The old General waited, as it was Galbadian military tradition that one not see their commanding officer leaving their briefing, then left back to the rest of his mansion, hoping he made the right choice.  
  
Meanwhile...  
  
Irvine and Rinoa sat across from eachother at the new restaurant in Balamb. The fishermen at Balamb had a good catch that day, and so Irvine half payed attention to the Balamb Fish on his plate, and half to Rinoa. She had herself similarly preoccupied. Irvine had watched her try to figure out whether or not she liked him all day. He had the same problem on his mind, althouh h had settled it. He liked Rinoa. The actual question was more of whom he liked more, Rinoa or Selphie. At the moment, the answer was Rinoa. She broke the silence of their contemplation with her conclusion. "Irvine, I think it would be best for everyone if you just went back to Selphie. It'll be a few days, sure, but then you'll be back together and we'll all be happy. You two look so happy together." Irvine thought for a second, then decided on his answer "Rinoa, I'm sure I could be at least as happy with you. Selphie's forgotten me already, I'm no great loss to her." He looked into her ever-pale face, and saw pure beauty staring back.  
  
Rinoa responded, mock-anger filling her voice "MEANY! How can you do that to poor Selphie? How can you say that about her? You've had a crush on her since you were six!" Irvine began to laugh quietly, which caused Rinoa to start giggling. Irvine broke out of his laughter with a response "Besides, Rinoa, you know we'd not all be happy. We have feelings for eachother, like it or not, and holding them in like this will only hurt us." Rinoa answered quickly "but what about Squall and Selphie? You can't deny that you don't have feelings for her any more than I can for him." Irvine thought of that carefully. "You're right, Rinoa. I'll see what I can work out with Selphie. Maybe we'll get back together. At the same time, though... We can't just go back to your Squall and my Sefie. It would be the same kind of denial. It might be better if we just let them forget us." "Irvine, how can you suggest we do this to them?" Irvine slid his chair around the small table to put his right arm around Rinoa's shoulders, and bring his mouth an inch from her ear. "Rinoa, once they've forgotten us, they'll find other people if they're lonely. They might even go to eachother. In fact, given about a week after we leave them, we could set them up together and have them think they've always liked eachother." Rinoa was unsure as to Irvine's seriousness, and so she told him her thoughts on that in a voice that left him pulling his head back a foot, and almost falling off his chair "You're so mean. How can you think of telling such lies to Selphie?"  
  
Irvine replaced his arm around Rinoa's shoulders, and put his other arm on her thigh. He pulled his head closer to her, and watched her turn her head. Their lips met, and Irvine began to press his tongue into her mouth. She pulled away, slowly "Irvine, as much as I'd love to, I can't. I keep thinking of Squall, and of Selphie. You two are so cute together, and I don't want to break that up." Irvine pulled his head away from her, and spoke "Rinoa, you won't be. Selphie has already forgotten me. Using GFs since she was twelve reshaped her mind, and now she can't live without them, and they continue to eat her memories, and couldn't leave them unjunctioned if she tried. She isn't the same person as the one my crush formed for." Rinoa was shocked by Irvine speaking of Selphie like this, and had to pause for a moment to think of something to say. "Irvine, you have the nicest girl in Garden to yourself. She puts up with your constant flirting with half of Garden. And THIS is what you do the moment the GFs stop her remembering you?" It was Irvine's turn to be shocked then. "Rinoa, I don't mean it like that. Its just that I have to choose, and I want you over Selphie right now. If I tried to go with both you and Selphie, I'd be lying to her." Rinoa threw his arm off of her, and began to stare intently at her feet "This is going nowhere." They finished their meal in silence, split the bill, and left.  
  
Author's Note: Well, my younger brother's computer broke down, and so my father tried to test it by using a part from my computer... That part promptly broke. As a result, I'm writing this from my youngest brother's computer. This chapter wasn't part of my original plan, but I decided the next chapter needed something to lead into it. And to think I'm sitting inside, in a room that is almost designed to hold heat in, with a computer running, in nice, warm weather. I should be outside, rather than setting fictional characters up to die.  
  
To my reviewers:  
  
wonderful failure: Glad you like it. I was thinking of trying my hand at parodying the "What did she do to *you* to deserve _THAT_?! stories (aka QuistisxSeifer), as the Squinoa happily ever afters have enough parodies, but, because it isn't mentioned in the game, everyone thinks that WDSDTYTDTs are somehow original. You also forgot the AU Squinoas, which are also about as common, and get about an equal number of reviews as QuistisxSeifer (Even if they don't, its still often in excess of far too many), but I'll have to rant on that later, and leave it as the stories with the formulaic plots are popular, and the originals are not. On a different subject, did you already think Irvine and Rinoa would be cute together before reading this, or did this convince you?  
  
fallingfarther: *mad scientist laugh* Watch as I torment you with another three paragraphs of fluff! I think now I have a full chapter worth of fluff at least! *laughs evilly*. Don't worry, I'll give you a chance to catch up with my next chapter, which will have a bit less fluff. 


	6. Another Two Victims

Disclaimer: Look at the Chapter 1 disclaimer again. It still applies.  
  
About a week after the previous chapter...  
  
Irvine heard Squall signalling him, Selphie, Rinoa, Quistis, and Zell over the Garden intercom. He hurried to the bridge, and found Xu and Squall already waiting at the office below the bridge, while Nida could he heard on the bridge. The five called all assembled, and Squall announced "There's been an emergency request for SeeD. Apparently a prominent Galbadian has been kidnapped by terrorists, and they are holding him for a billion gil ransom, due within three days, otherwise, he dies. A signle sign of an attempted rescue will also result in his death. SeeD has been payed one hundred thousand gil in advance, and another million once he is freed, *if* we succeed. Selphie, I'm appointing you to command this mission." He paused, and Selphie aknowledged his order with a "BOOYAKA!" Squall continued "Pick a team of SeeDs. You leave immediatly by a Garden Boat. From there, go to Fisherman's Horizon, and take the Ragnarok. Xu has programmed the course into the boats nav computer." Selphie shouted, as she always did "Great! Well, I'm off to pick my team!" She sprinted away into the elevator as she said it. Squall made an announcement "All SeeDs, assemble at the first floor lobby in dress uniform," and everyone but him left through the elevator.  
  
Irvine stood in one of several lines, between a veteran SeeD he didn't know, and a SeeD who had only taken the field exam three months ago. Selphie bounced, weaving through the ranks of SeeDs, examining the medals on their uniforms. She finally selected two who met her qualifications, and the three headed off to their dorms to change into normal clothes, pack, and gather weapons. The others scattered. Irvine found Rinoa off in a corner, and Irvine mentioned his retirement to her "Squall always says he's going to process my retirement forms, but somehow he never does." He was glad he wasn't picked for this mission to kill again, and yet at the same time sad. He and Selphie were getting along well, and almost back to where they were before his mission. She'd be gone for about four days, and that would set him back the entire week. He knew, though, that if he had to kill another human, he'd snap. Rinoa broke him out of his train of thought "You know how it is. Squall always forgets everything, now. Besides, he might think you're too young to retire. You're twenty, only slightly past your prime. Squall's only a couple months younger than you, and his retirement's nowhere in sight." Irvine had to think for a second, then responded "He's a bureaucrat, not a fighter, and can't remember any of the lives he's taken." Rinoa changed the subject "Come on, let's get to the dock, see Selphie off."  
  
Irvine and Rinoa walked to the dock, which was once half of the Balamb Garden Parking Lot. Rinoa began to run as they passed the entrance, and said "Wait here, I've got something in my dorm." Irvine was left, puzzled, as he waited. "What does Rinoa have for Selphie?" he wondered. Rinoa came running back, carrying a large framed picture. She showed it to him. It was one of the three of them, Irvine in the center, with Selphie under his right arm, wearing his hat. Rinoa stood next to Irvine's left, both her arms around him. All three had smiles covering half their faces, showing genuine happiness, rather than I'm-posing-for-a-camera or let's-get-this-over-with smiles. Remembering that picture brought a smile to Irvine's face. He and Rinoa waited for Selphie and her squad to get back. She arrived some minutes later, and walked her squad to the docks. As they boarded, she kissed Irvine goodbye, and Rinoa gave her the picture "So you don't forget all of us during the mission."  
  
Two days later...  
  
Irvine, Rinoa, Quistis, and Zell were summoned once again, but this time some others were too. Again, Squall and Xu were there. This time, though, Squall said "Xu just recorded this transmission. I think that everyone should hear it. Xu, start the recording." Xu saluted, then pressed a button on a computer console. A sound came from the office radio speaker, in a thick Estharan accent, a man's voice "Last transmission from spaceship Ragnarok." This noticeably shocked the assembled, although they kept their SeeD discipline. Selphie's voice came on "Wooo-hooo! Slowing down to find a suitable landing site! Strap yourselves in." On the computer screen, a wireframe rendering of the terrain around Ragnarok was shown in green. Ragnarok circled, slowed, and dropped in altitude. It began to glide to over a landing site. Suddenly, some red spheres appeared on the screen, flared to become much wider and brighter, then collapsed. Tiny dots flew from them toward the Ragnarok, leaving red trails. Another Estharan accent came on, this one a woman's voice "Incoming missiles." She was calm, as most missile alerts are. Apparently Selphie began to take evasive action. More red flares, heat signatures, apparently, erupted on the ground, and more missiles flew from them. Another heat signature, appeared on the Ragnarok. The other missiles flew toward it. Selphie shouted, a panic in her voice "We've been hit! I'm going to try to land this bird as fast as I can. It's gonna be rough!" Alarms blared throughout the Ragnarok, and could even be heard in the transmission. More missiles hit, enlarging the blast hole of the first. Ragnarok bucked and rolled. Selphie shouted "You can't die on me!" as she fought for control. Then, simply, resignedly "It was a trap. They called us here to die." Another volley of missiles hit. Halfway through the volley, the transmission cut out.  
  
The assembled SeeDs began to mumble to eachother worriedly "Is he..." "Is she?" "Selphie's not dead! No way she can be!" Rinoa had broken down in tears, crying onto Irvine's shoulder, as it was closer than Squall's. Xu added one more thing "The attack identification cameras mounted on Ragnarok managed to pick this up," and projected a picture of five people clustered around two SAM launchers in the Dollet mountains. She highlighted an area on the screen, and zoomed in. It was beyond grainy, but a Galbadian flag was plainly visible on the side of one of the launchers. Further, the (evident) leader of the five was wearing a medal, the Sword of Galbadia's Heroes, one of the higher honors any Galbadian soldier could achieve. Rinoa was painfully shocked by this "Why, father? Why Selphie?" Irvine could do nothing to calm her, except what he was doing, holding her. Squall announced to the assembled "I called you here because you were on friendly terms with one or more of the deceased. I am assembling a mission into Deling City to assassinate General Caraway in reprisal for the Galbadian Army's ambush of SeeD. Any volunteers?" Zell and Quistis remained calm, knowing that they couldn't kill Rinoa's father. Rinoa was, of course, unable to kill her father, and Irvine was a killer no longer. The other SeeDs, though, had vengeance on their minds, and could think of little else.  
  
Rinoa was somewhat in denial. She hated her father, and yet still cared for him, didn't want his death "Maybe there's been a mistake. They could have stolen those..." Squall asked "and the medal?" Rinoa turned to look at him, tears streaming down her face. "It might be faked!" Irvine turned to her "Rinoa, it is a high crime and the worst thing one can do, socially, in Galbadia to fake a medal. Anyone with a faked medal is ostracized and put to death. You should know that." Rinoa cried more "Just because it was a great soldier, and G-Army equipment... Doesn't mean..." Irvine asked her "What else can it be?" She cried even further, shouting "I don't know!" She slammed her fist into Irvine's chest. Irvine didn't notice; Rinoa's fists weren't that strong. The other SeeDs left the office, and Rinoa stormed out to her dorm to cry.  
  
Four days later...  
  
The SeeD hit squad returned to Garden, to hold Selphie's funeral, along with those for the SeeDs who died under her command. They reported to Squall, and Irvine, Rinoa, Zell, and Quistis heard. Selphie had been avenged. The old General had given the weapons to the terrorists, although he had not commanded the attack. He encouraged his men to become terrorists. He had confessed so himself, and been put to a quick and painless death. Rinoa wept loudly at Selphie's funeral. Irvine noticed how close they were as friends in the time before she died, although he couldn't help but think she might also be weeping for her dead father. He didn't dare to ask her, though, as it was a touchy subject. Squall had forgotten to plan Selphie's funeral, and almost forgotten to attend it, so the Garden Festival committee had to plan it on their own. It was a much happier event than a triple funeral should be, but it was done to what Selphie's wishes would be if she were alive. Irvine had to bite back tears for Selphie's death.  
  
Immediatly after the funeral, Rinoa cornered Squall, who had almost forgotten to attend, and shouted "Squall, we're finished!" Squall asked her "What?" Rinoa replied, anger filling her voice "I said we're finished! Through! You completely forgot Selphie's death yesterday. You forgot to do any funeral arrangements, and you're practically her brother! You almost missed the beginning of the funeral!" Squall tried to calm her "Look, Rinoa, I know my memory is hard, but I need to keep the GFs junctioned. Just because I'm commander doesn't mean I never have to fight. I need the GFs to keep my skills up, and I feel vulnerable without them." "So you're blaming your memory on the GFs. It was *your* choice to junction them in the first place." Squall saw little way to escape this fight, and so withdrew into his emotionless armor. He said nothing to her, letting her scream at him. Some time later, Rinoa left to scream to a wall in her dorm, leaving Squall broken and bitter. Irvine caught up to her on her way, and she invited him in, let him listen to her cry. She was terribly saddened by Selphie's death, as she had known Selphie well, far better than Ellone. Irvine tried to comfort her, and the two fell into bed together.  
  
Author's Notes: My computer is still not working.  
  
Recap: Selphie and General Caraway died. I'd have to start keeping track to make sure I don't kill the same character twice, if I didn't already have a general plan.  
  
To my reviewers:  
  
fallingfarther: Well, sorry, but the love triangle is gone now. Selphie's dead, and Rinoa dumped squall. Time to decide who to kill next... Next chapter will probably be fluffy, though, and not involve any death.  
  
wonderful failure: Thanks. I'm not sure what makes Irvine x Rinoa work for me either. The idea came to me as a sort of random thought, and this story fleshed out around it, and (apparently) my muse convinced me of it. There are some good AU Squinoas, but the bad, cliche'd ones get all the reviews (although even they get more reviews/chapter, on average, than the good stuff).  
  
Green: Where'd you go? 


	7. Love Takes Root

Disclaimer: Remember that one-line disclaimer six chapters ago? It still applies.  
  
Irvine put his arm around Rinoa, and leaned over to kiss her. It was only a week ago that she had left Squall. She turned her head, and pressed her lips against his. The two sat at Zell and Quistis's hidden table, along with Quistis, while waiting for Zell and Xu to get back with Quistis's food. Quistis was looking off into the top of the tree, outside the umbrella set up to protect the table from falling leaves. Irvine pulled away from Rinoa, and the two simply stared into eachother's eyes across a gap of less than three inches. Every second ticked on into a pleasant eternity. Irvine's thoughts began to scatter, going nowhere at a mile a second. He began to think, barely out loud "the price they pay..." He had often acted this way recently. Rinoa leaned to his right ear, and asked him "what?" His response came, still quiet "Rinoa, I'm half-deaf there." "Oh, sorry Irvine" she replied with a giggle, and leaned over to his left "you said something about prices." "Oh, that. It took Squall only three days for him to forget that you left him, and now, only a week after, he forgot his bitterness. A blessing and a curse. He doesn't remember any of the people he's killed."  
  
Rinoa was slightly taken aback, but Irvine had always been like this recently. On their first night together, a week ago, the night of Selphie's funeral, she had been awakened in the middle of the night by Irvine's nightmares, and his talking in his sleep. Nothing had happened that night, she had just cried against him for Selphie's death, letting her tears soak his body. She asked him "people he's killed?" He replied quietly "the soldiers who died to his gunblade, and the people who died as a result of his orders or inaction, on both sides. Seifer, Ellone." He paused, then breathed the next name "Selphie." He continued, his voice back to normal "Fujin, Raijin, all of the grunt soldiers and SeeDs dead as a result of these missions. I'm left to bear the burden of remembering everything that I've killed. I can remember the arrogant smirk on Seifer's face before I killed him. I remember the people I killed." "Irvine, distract yourself. Here," Rinoa said to him calmly, as she drew her mouth against his. He kissed her, keeping his tongue in her mouth for as long as he could. His thoughts left death, and turned entirely to Rinoa.  
  
Quistis, meanwhile, had turned away, looking anywhere but the two of them. Rinoa noticed this as she pulled away from Irvine. "Oh, sorry Quistis. That was selfish of us." Quistis simply nodded in response. Looking for something to talk about, Rinoa asked "Quistis, have any missions?" "Yes, actually. Zell, Xu, and I are supposed to respond rapidly to any Eternal Peace actions and stop them." Irvine responded "quiet so far?" "Yes, they haven't done much after the Ragnarok attack, and our team wasn't assembled then." Zell and Xu walked back into this secret area, food in hand. Irvine spoke to Xu "heard you got put back on active duty." "I have. Squall's probably forgotten to find himself a replacement secretary." Zell changed the subject "Irvine, what are you going to do with your gun collection now that you're retired?" "I'm torn. I partly want to keep it, as a reminder of the Ultimecia war, and another part never wants to be reminded of who I've killed again. A third part thinks I must keep it, and never forget what I've done." He half-wished for Zell's forgetfulness, so that he could recover from having to kill one who was almost his brother, and the other half realized what a curse it was, to be rid of a pain which he had brought upon himself.  
  
Zell snapped him back to reality "Irvine, spacing's Squall's job." "Huh?" "You weren't talking, lost in thought." "Oh." "Anyway, can I have some of your guns?" "Sure. I'm only going to need one as a reminder, and I don't know if I even want to be reminded." Zell smiled brightly "Thanks man!", and grabbed Quistis close to him. Irvine responded by similarly pulling Rinoa with one arm. Xu had retreated into regulation land. The couples released eachother, and looked for something to talk about. Rinoa spoke first, only half aloud. "Everyone's dying..." Irvine asked her "what?" "Everyone's dying. Cid, Edea, Seifer, Selphie, my father... Nobody is without blood on their hands, and nobody is without someone to avenge. This will never stop." Quistis tried to comfort her "Sure it will, Rinoa. It may have already. Galbadia is in too much chaos to do anything." Irvine remarked "chaos that is killing... people." Commenting on the situation, Zell decided to break the mood "Not you too, Rinoa. Now both of you are stuck thinking of death!" The entire table, excepting Xu, who was still in her own little world, burst into laughter.   
  
His train of thought on death disrupted, Irvine realized what he had to be happ about; he didn't need his guns anymore, he had a wonderful girlfriend, and his stock in Balamb Garden would pay to keep him in comfort there despite not doing anything. Irvine kissed Rinoa's cheek. He could see her amazing beauty, but most of his love for her stemmed from the fact that she could remember what the others could not, and that they were alike in many more ways. Even he had some things he naturally forgot, such as the exact feeling of holding Selphie. Rinoa felt somehow different. Not better or worse to hold, just different. He grabbed her tightly to him. He remembered the first few days. He knew Rinoa and Selphie were very close friends, and how much Rinoa had cried over Selphie's death. Irvine had played his part as the man, remaining tough and not crying even when he wanted to. His mind was pulled back to the present by Rinoa, who had put one arm around him, but began to pull away.  
  
Irvine opened his eyes and looked across the table. Quistis had apparently asked Xu for an opinion on a new Garden rule, and she was answering, in something approaching excitement, meaning it was faster than her normal clear, enunciated speech, and in something more than a monotone. Zell had his arm around Quistis's back, and she had hers around his. Zell asked Irvine "What were you thinking about this time?" "The last week, and what its done to Rinoa." "Yeah, must be hard on you," he said, to Rinoa this time. "Yeah... Leaving Squall was hard, but at the same time I couldn't forgive him for forgetting Selphie. She was my closest friend, and, the moment she died, I stole her boyfriend." "Rinoa, I'm sure she forgives you. She wanted everyone to be happy. If our happiness comes this way, she'd be glad for us." "You're right, I just still have a nagging doubt." "If you don't want this-" Rinoa shook her head "I didn't mean it like that. I know I want to stay with you, I just can't help but think of Selphie." Quistis's discussion with Xu came to a close and she turned to talk to her boyfriend, the two holding eachother in their arms. Irvine and Rinoa barely noticed, locked in their own conversation.  
  
Meanwhile...  
  
The former Galbadian colonel read the report his secretary had given him. His takeover of Eternal Peace had succeeded, and, due to a mistake that had been made because he ordered it so, General Caraway was dead. His strategy was working exactly as planned. Boot-licking had put him there, and murder could give him rule of Galbadia. The now-dead general never suspected that Smith ordered that the information of their link to the Galbadian Military Government be slipped. Now, due to this, Eternal Peace was preparing to install a new ruler of Galbadia, one whom they controlled in secret.  
  
Author's Note: My computer works again. Sorry it took so long, I'll try to get on my usual 2-3 times per week schedule on my primary computer. I have no excuse for the delay.  
  
To my reviewers:  
  
Green: Glad you liked the last three chapters. This one's almost pure fluff.  
  
Wonderful Failure: Yep, Selphie tried, died, and was avenged. What'll happen next? I hope this chapter's clear enough on that. After this? I guess you'll have to wait for next chapter. 


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